Line #44 Wrestling/Fortune


1	%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.
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3	[[quoteright:215:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/4tunefour.png]]
4	[[quoteright:333:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fortunebfg_5500.png]]
5	[[caption-width-right:333:From [[{{Heel}} strutting down]] with [[Wrestling/RicFlair the Naitch]]…]]
6	[[quoteright:333:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fortunefaces_1468.png]]
7	[[caption-width-right:333:…to [[{{Face}} showing force]] with [[Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels Daniels]].]]
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9	->''"Got it guys? It's not Wrestling/TheFourHorsemen. It's the same fingers, but it's Fourtune! It's Wrestling/{{TNA}}, and it's time for a change!"''
10	-->-- '''Wrestling/RicFlair''', ''TNA Impact'', June 17, 2010
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12	Fortune (originally spelled [[FourIsDeath Fourtune]]) was a PowerStable in [[Wrestling/{{TNA}} Total Nonstop Action Wrestling]] which started in 2010 and came to an end in late 2011, formed by Wrestling/RicFlair and prominently led by Wrestling/AJStyles.
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14	Flair first came to TNA on January 4, 2010 as part of the massive influx of name value talent courtesy of Wrestling/HulkHogan and Wrestling/EricBischoff coming in, and didn't take too long before striking up an alliance with then-World Heavyweight Champion (and face of the company) AJ Styles, with Flair being AJ's manager and mentor. AJ would adopt Flair's lifestyle, cheating ways, sequined entrance robe (albeit with a hood), and even a couple of his moves as tribute, while Flair kept AJ on top until he lost the world title three months later to Wrestling/RobVanDam. Shortly thereafter, recently-returned former X-Division Champion [[Wrestling/FrankieKazarian Kazarian]] came into the picture, and he and AJ started fighting over being Flair's top guy to the point they couldn't work together long enough to beat Wrestling/JayLethal—until Flair introduced the solution: take AJ, Kaz, and fellow Team Flair allies [[Wrestling/JamesStorm Beer]] [[Wrestling/BobbyRoode Money]] [[BashBrothers Inc.]] and [[Wrestling/NigelMcGuinness Desmond Wolfe]], and give them the chance to come together under the modified Horsemen banner of Fourtune.
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16	Desmond's losing streak ended up keeping him out of the Fourtune lineup, while the Core Four (as they referred to themselves) were soon joined by Kaz's rival and X-Division Champ Douglas Williams, along with Wrestling/MattMorgan as Flair's personal bodyguard, to make up the numbers against a band of [[Wrestling/{{ECW}} ECW Originals]] who would henceforth be known as [=EV2.0=] due to [[DisneyOwnsThisTrope trademarks]] on the company name. Fourtune hated [=EV2=] for the perception of their being overrated {{Garbage Wrestler}}s as well as outsiders taking spots away from the guys that built the company. (Also during this feud: the spelling of the stable name was tweaked to its more known version because everybody kept pointing out that [[ArtisticLicenseStatistics they had more than four wrestlers]].)
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18	After virtually dominating the feud with [=EV2=] and joining with Hogan and Bischoff's latest rehashing of the nWo to get the power to fire most of the Hardcore crew, Fortune contained most of the titles and most of the credibility within the Immortal alliance. And on February 3, 2011, when [[RealLifeWritesThePlot real life wrote the plot]], they took that credibility and [[ConspiracyRedemption turned on Immortal with it, costing then-]][[TheAntichrist Antichrist]] {{Heel}} Wrestling/JeffHardy the World Heavyweight Title. The ensuing feud kept true to Fortune's original purpose, turned them into the faces the crowd always believed they were, added the return of Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels to join the stable when they needed someone to fill in for AJ heading into ''Lethal Lockdown'', led to a litany of noteworthy moments which had TNA diehards jumping for joy, and set the seeds up for the future character directions of all involved (although Flair missed out on much of the awesomeness, as he chose Immortal over Fortune).
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20	Said future character directions took hold with the group's gradual disbanding in late 2011, what with the latest installment of ''[[RecycledPremise Daniels Betrays AJ Styles Over Envy and Pride]]'' being arguably the best one yet (particularly as it led to Kaz and Daniels forming the infamous duo known as Bad Influence), Bobby Roode returning to his heel roots as one of the best [[CardCarryingVillain proudly selfish win-at-all-costs villains]] wrestling has had in years, and James Storm and AJ Styles being compelling players with constantly sympathetic storylines, trials and tribulations, while having all-too-brief flirtations with the World Heavyweight Title. As for Flair, he would, as the pattern goes, return to WWE as an ambassador in the aftermath.
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22	As usual, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortune_(professional_wrestling) The Other Wiki]] has a more extensive article on the history of Fortune.
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24	-----
25	!!! "We are, we are! Fortune Tropes!":
26	* TheAce: Forever AJ, not just for the stable but for TNA in general.
27	** In theory, they all should have been presented as such before Fourtune's formation, being largely made up of some of the most talented (and for the most part longstanding) ''TNA originals''. Of course, being forced to the side is what caused them to pull together anyway.
28	* AffablyEvil: Considering they had Wrestling/RicFlair, a bunch of well-liked TNA Originals, and a purpose the fans agreed with, it was pretty hard to hate them when they were heels. More often than not during their entrances, fans were legitimately not booing, but instead going "[[VerbalTic Wooo!]]"
29	* TheAlcoholic: Ric Flair's always been about the finer things like champagne. Storm just about drinking.
30	* AntiVillain: While brutal in their tactics, Fortune's heel acts had the rather sympathetic motivation of not wanting to be overlooked and lost in the shuffle in a company whose foundation they set.
31	* ArchEnemy: First [=EV2=], then Immortal, were targeted by Fortune for trying to turn TNA into ECW or WCW.
32	* BadassInANiceSuit: Especially AJ, who on several occasions had led suit-clad beatdowns on Flair and Fortune's enemies prior to their face turn.
33	* BadassLongrobe: Whenever Flair had to get in the ring, he would don his trademark long sequined robes. He also had one made for AJ, who donned it during the beginning of their partnership.
34	* BashBrothers: Storm and Roode (Beer Money) were the primary tag team of the group, though Styles, Kazarian, and Daniels also shared a strong team-within-the-team dynamic due to their longtime friendship.
35	* BerserkButton:
36	** Their hatred for both [=EV2=] and Immortal pretty much boils down to they got tired of being overlooked by big name outsiders exploiting the company they built.
37	** Flair betrayed them after their HeelFaceTurn because they made that decision without consulting him.
38	* BlasphemousBoast: Flair literally thought of himself at the time as wrestling's incarnation of God.
39	* BookEnds: The first four non-Flair members of Fortune, the core four members of Fortune, the last four members of Fortune. Also, the first and last matches that could be considered part of Fortune involved AJ and Kazarian tagging up against Wrestling/SamoaJoe and a partner from the UK.
40	* CallingTheOldManOut: Fortune were built on this, ''especially'' during the initial stages of their HeelFaceTurn.
41	* CastingGag: Eight years later in WWE, Fortune member Wrestling/BobbyRoode becomes Mixed Match Challenge tag team and robe-wearing counterpart to Wrestling/RicFlair's [[WrestlingFamily daughter]] Wrestling/{{Charlotte\|Flair}}. A few months after that, she partners up with Wrestling/AJStyles.
42	* ChekhovsGun: Unintentional, but it still counts. Flair was originally saying "They" were Fortune during the initial Immortal conspiracy. Cue IronicEcho when the "Them" that Wrestling/KurtAngle and Crimson were promising would come after Immortal heading into 2/3/11 turned out to be Fortune making their move.
43	* CombatPragmatist: Flair, Roode, and Kazarian in particular, though AJ was deceivingly good at this as well.
44	* ConspiracyRedemption: Their collective HeelFaceTurn was made against Immortal, a really elaborate conspiracy by Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff to take over TNA and later, pro wrestling in general with Jeff Hardy as their centerpiece.
45	* CoolOldGuy: Flair.
46	* TheDogBitesBack: Treating AJ Styles and Matt Morgan like crap came back to haunt Eric Bischoff, as it caused Morgan to pull a HeelFaceTurn on him as well as solidified AJ and Fortune's plan to form the first real threat to Immortal. Between this, Sting's return, and Jeff Hardy falling off the wagon, Immortal stopped being TheIlluminati of TNA and started really being, ironically, the disjointed pseudo-ripoff of the [[Wrestling/NewWorldOrder original nWo]] that fans saw them as all along.
47	* DynamicEntry: Daniels' [[HesBack return to TNA]] on the March 31, 2011 edition of ''Impact!'', in which he took out all of Immortal by leaping off the top of a steel cage to save Fortune from a beatdown, making his return to TNA and aligning with Fortune.
48	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The group's name was initially spelled Fourtune, which earned a TON of ribbing online due to nearly always having more than four members even without counting Flair.
49	* {{Foreshadowing}}: Much like the Chekhov's Gun above, unintentional but it still counts. During their time with Immortal, Fortune were giving constant hints in backstage segments toward how they could only trust "the core four" (each other/themselves), and Robert Roode even once said in an interview that he envisioned them holding all the gold, even going so far as to say he saw AJ regaining the World Heavyweight Championship. ''This was while Jeff Hardy was World Heavyweight Champion.''
50	* FourIsDeath: The concept of the stable was inspired by Flair's former stable Wrestling/TheFourHorsemen. The first four members referred to themselves as the "core" four members. Even after the members list became more than four, they continued to invoke the trope, what with the logo with two 4s and the theme song saying "Fortune Four". Oh, and there were eight actual members total in the history of Fortune (8 = 2 x 4).
51	* TheGiant: Don't have to look at Matt Morgan long to see he is an archetypical example, except that he describes himself as "the most athletic big man in professional wrestling".
52	* GreenEyedMonster [=/=] {{Pride}}: What ultimately killed the group following the end of their objective. Crept up in Daniels towards AJ (''[[RecycledScript again]]''), then in Roode towards Storm after the latter won the title.
53	* IAmSong: "We Are, We Are, Fortune 4!" An offshoot of AJ's tradition with his theme being a straightforward version of the trope, one version of which had the same drum/cymbal beat as the Fortune theme—showing subtly that he was the shot-caller of the group among the active wrestlers.
54	* InsistentTerminology / CanonDiscontinuity: When Roode, Kaz, and Daniels later formed the '''[[FunWithAcronyms E]]'''xtraordinary '''[[FunWithAcronyms G]]'''entlemen's '''[[FunWithAcronyms O]]'''rganization, they termed it as a '''new''' alliance despite having previously acknowledged Fortune during prior attempted team-ups.
55	* JackOfAllStats: Especially Styles, Daniels, and Kazarian.
56	* LargeHam: Flair first, the others following thereafter.
57	* ManOfWealthAndTaste: Flair brought his signature style, with three-piece suits and sunglasses, and the others inherited it.
58	* MookHorrorShow: On the July 14, 2011, edition, Sting (who's been "coincidentally" mimicking [[Film/TheDarkKnight Heath Ledger's]] [[ComicBook/TheJoker "Joker"]] with his new makeup design) set loose a small group of clown-masked minions on Immortal. What follows pretty much played out like a slasher flick, with the clowns picking off Immortal one by one. Gunner even attempts to invoke [[FinalGirl Final Boy]] on them, which fails. The guys under the mask? Turned out to be Fortune.
59	* MotiveDecay: Flair's defection to Immortal caused this big time for his role in TNA, both in-universe and out. In-universe he betrayed his own plans to both finally defeat Hogan once and for all and to remake the Horsemen with TNA homegrown talent and proved it was all about the power for him. Out-of-universe he seemed to float around with no purpose, as there wasn't exactly much potential to elevate amongst the Immortal ranks, what with the one young rising star in Gunner being lost in the shuffle at the time. He was such an ineffectual member with Immortal that people were speculating he was being TheMole to help either Fortune or Sting with taking out Hogan, but this never materialized.
60	* OutGambitted: Often did this to Immortal in the summer of 2011, especially when they worked together with Sting.
61	* ParentalSubstitute: Flair was this as AJ and Kaz's EvilMentor during the beginning of the group. The two even argued for his attention in a similar manner to two brothers fighting to be their dad's favorite.
62	* PopularityPower: Probably the most popular (or at least the most unanimously well-liked) faction in the history of TNA.
63	* PowerStable: Based on the TropeCodifier of power stables no less.
64	* RunningGag: Flair being "iced". Meaning that a member of Fortune left him a bottle of Smirnoff Ice hidden and every time he found it he would have to chug it back. Flair happily complied every time.
65	* SacrificialLion: AJ became this shortly after the face turn when Immortal's [[TheBrute brute]] [[Wrestling/TheDudleyBoys Bully Ray]] paralyzed him with a superbomb through a table. Considering his role as the leader, the group was looking rough until a [[Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels certain individual]] decided [[HesBack to]] [[BigDamnHeroes return]] and [[TakeUpMySword take up his sword]] for a month until his return.
66	* SharpDressedMan: The main sign that this group was Flair's brainchild. Their attires became somewhat more casual after Flair turned on them, but still kept to the spirit of it. See BadassInANiceSuit.
67	* SpellMyNameWithAnS
68	** For the stable's first few months, the name was spelled "Fourtune" in honor of Wrestling/TheFourHorsemen. However, since more and more people pointed out that the stable has ''[[WritersCannotDoMath six]]''[[WritersCannotDoMath [= =]people in it (seven if including Flair)]] after including Morgan and Williams, it was switched to "Fortune".
69	** To make matters worse, exempting Flair in that number would become pretty dicey considering that he, against all common sense[[note]]what with him being a flabby old man who, aside from being the mastermind of this group, two years earlier had just had a hearty retirement ceremony after losing to Wrestling/ShawnMichaels at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania 24]]''[[/note]], would occasionally lace up the boots and get in the ring himself.
70	* TeamDad: Flair, until he turned on them.
71	* TookALevelInBadass: Both members of Beer Money, most notably Bobby Roode, who first showed signs of becoming the magnificent talker and big time singles star that he is today during Fortune's run as faces when calling out Hogan and Jarrett.
72	* TrueCompanions: Particularly the Core Four and Daniels. At least, until Daniels and Roode both became driven by ambitions of the self.
73	* UndyingLoyalty: Kazarian especially. It wasn't until ''after'' the stable died that Daniels convinced Kaz to reserve it for him and vice versa. Also, the group's purpose had this in spades to TNA, what with the core four being instrumental pieces in the company for years and Styles and Storm in particular having been there since day one.

Context Wrestling / Fortune